To Love a Shadow, To Be the Sun novel Chapter 1

As soon as Elara Jules was transferred from the ICU to a regular hospital room, her phone buzzed with a new message.

"Take a look—guess who your overprotective husband was cozying up with last night?"

Attached was a photo of Brian Vincent arm-in-arm with another woman at some swanky party.

The woman gazed up at him with unguarded adoration, while Brian…

That blazing gaze—the kind that used to be reserved for Elara alone—was fixed entirely on someone else.

Elara closed her eyes, her mind a storm of confusion and ache.

She and Brian had been married for four years. He had always treated her as though she were made of glass—something so fragile that even a common cold would compel him to walk out of a board meeting, hurry home, and watch over her until she swallowed the last pill.

But this time, after she was injured and sent to the hospital in Aalborg, Brian hadn't called, hadn't even texted, for five whole days. Even the two critical condition notices were signed by his assistant, not him—a detail that stung far more than she'd admit.

She'd assumed he was caught up in something urgent and endured the pain in silence, not wanting to disturb him.

She never imagined he'd been busy keeping another woman company.

And not just any woman—his so-called stepsister.

Before she could process, another message came in, as if her former friend had been waiting for her reaction:

"Your husband guards this woman like she's some rare endangered species. I'm really curious—when she gets back, where do you think you'll rank in his heart?"

Elara ignored the taunts, squinting through the ache at the photo, searching for details.

Lina Vincent. The "little sister" shipped off overseas just three days after their wedding—Elara could count on one hand the number of times they'd met.

But she recognized the necklace around Lina's neck. It looked exactly like the one Brian had bought at an outrageous price just three weeks ago, vowing it would be Elara's anniversary gift.

A gentle knock interrupted her spiraling thoughts.

"Mrs. Vincent, Mr. Vincent's business trip is wrapping up. He should be back soon," Yves Caldwell said, his voice calm and professional.

His response told Elara everything.

"So this was Brian's decision?"

A flicker of discomfort crossed Yves's face before he composed himself. "Of course not, Mrs. Vincent. Please don't read into it."

Which meant, of course, it was.

Elara's lips curved in a cold, humorless smile. "Lorraine, call the health department. File a complaint against Harmony General Hospital for switching my primary physician without consent. Report Dr. Charles Shaw for abandoning critical patients without cause."

Yves's jaw tightened. "Mrs. Vincent, isn't that a bit much?"

Elara's voice was ice. "This isn't your concern. From now on, I don't want any updates about Brian, and you don't need to come here again."

Yves opened his mouth, then closed it, defeated.

Elara knew he'd relay every word. That was the point.